treasures.

I love the concept of flea markets and yard sales. One man's junk is truly another man's treasure. There is something fascinating about the history behind the items that someone once owned. A set of china tea cups could have been used between two friends, divulging the details of their lives over a pot of tea. Oh, and old pictures and postcards! I could stare at those for hours, just imagining the stories behind them.

In addition to history, I also love organizing; breathing a sense of structure into chaos,clearing out things that haven't been used in years, and only keeping the useful items around. On rainy days, one of my favorite things to do is clean out a closet. This is even better when it is a closet in my mother's house. God love her, the woman saves everything. There is a room in the basement of my parent's house where 50 to 60 boxes live. My mother has not touched any of the contents in 10 years or longer, but don't even think about trying to clear them out to create space! Last fall, I opened a few and found that they contained school work from my brothers and me (painted hand prints, cursive practice sheets, pictures colored by out little fingers)--from preschool all the way up to 4th grade. On the flip side, if you ever need a receipt for the t-shirt purchased from The Gap in 1998, she's your girl! Sigh. My momma is a pack rat, it is what it is, and she will most likely always be a pack-rat. :)

Perhaps my love of cleaning and organizing stems from this very fact!

A few weeks ago, I was in Dallas with my friend, Christine, and we found a yard sale. This was one of the most amazing yard sales I've ever seen! It was the kind of display that prompted Christine to call her friends to rush down and check it out. Before we knew it, we had accumulated a pile of lamps, containers, wall hangings, picture frames, and hooks. Then it hit me that I was flying back to Nashville, and space would be limited. In situations like these, I like to encourage my friends to buy all the items that I will leave behind. At least someone will give them a good home! (I have to say, I have excellent sales skills when it comes to talking a friend into buying an item. I can make a compelling argument for why you need the DREAM sign for your future children one day. I should have been an attorney!) Once we deliberated over our pile, I'm proud to say we both did a remarkable job of only purchasing things that were useful and beautiful.

My friend Susanne, told me about a quote years ago that always plays in my mind when I am moving (which is often) or cleaning. She told me that you should never own anything that wasn't beautiful, meaningful, or useful. I think this is actually a Feng Shui principal, but I like to give her the credit. I think this is a great philosophy for a consumer like me!

Here are photos of the items I was able to carry back to Nashville. My suitcase was considerably heavier!

a Café jar that now houses my supply of Enfusia

my "new" mercury glass lamp, which is now illuminates my room

lovely little wall hooks

i love the picture on the right of the little boy boxing.

These frames (almost) match my lamp!

pool day.

Today was a glorious day! The first pool day of the summer! I have been anxiously awaiting this day for quite some time. For the better part of last week, I'd taken to dressing in my bright blue swimsuit and comfy cover up. I'd been doing a good amount of reading in the hammock, yard work and gardening in my dear friends' yard, and just puttering about. There was no need to get all dolled up, so I dressed down. At first, I thought this unusual wardrobe choice was due to sheer laziness, but now I realize, my subconscious was cluing me in: I was simply so excited about the start of summer, I had to dress the part!

So this morning after a scrumptious breakfast of sausage and eggs smothered in hot sauce (yum!), we headed to the pool. Slathered with sunscreen (SPF 70 for me), and armed with a giant watermelon and juicy limes, we headed to a private pool to soak up the sun.

It is officially the start of summer! And just in case this is not a known fact, watermelon doused with lime juice might be the best thing in the world.

christine and me, chomping on watermelon with a slurry of lime juice

me.

stine.

water babies.

glorious sunshine.

I am a Blogger.

Well, here it is. My very first post as an official blogger. This is an experiment for me. Putting pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) has never been easy. I much prefer to read what other people have written and live vicariously through their words. So we shall see how this all shakes out...

Lately, I have developed a deep affection for yoga and its healing qualities. At the start of each class, my yoga instructor, Sharon, encourages us to set an intention before we begin our practice. It occurs to me that setting an intention for this blog might be a good idea as well. My dear friend (and the designer of my blog), Christine, recently gave me a journal. This was the quote on the inside of the notebook:

"This is a space for dream words, love words, made up words, flying words, fall down and get up words. Get to know the sound of your inner voice. Be creative. Be bold. Be generous."

This quote perfectly sums up the intention of this space. This year has been a year of getting to know myself again, no strings attached. Life is one giant question mark for me and several things remain to be determined. Oddly enough, this is comforting, and, for the moment, I wouldn't have it any other way. Here goes...